Customer Reviews

Inside Straight (Wild Cards Novel)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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The first in a new series of books set in the Wild Cards universe where in the 1940's an alien virus transformed a portion of the population into aces with superpowers or into jokers with bizarre physical transformations. In this volume a set of aces are competing on American Hero, a reality show that is trying to create a new celebrity superhero. Some of the aces eliminated early on in the show overcome their depression at being losers by taking up the cause of an attempted genocide of the joker population of Egypt.

I had not read any of the previous Wild Card books, but this book was totally understandable without having done so, although there are plenty of references that I am sure would mean more if I had. The book is a little different from most shared-world anthologies in that is structured more as a novel so that each contributor's piece is more of a chapter than a standalone story, with short bits by Daniel Abraham from the viewpoint of Jonathan Hive, an ace who can transform into a swarm of wasps, acting as connectors between a lot of the sections. The structure works well with the characters seeming to act consistently across different authors sections, which is often not true in shared worlds. The story kept me interested with plenty of action, and creative use of the various aces superpowers. I will be interested in reading the follow-up volumes as well as the original Wild Cards series.

I was skeptical about this book for several reasons:

1). The "mosiac" novel concept - a collection of short stories? Sorry, not my thing.
2). The book is edited by George R. R. Martin. I don't want to read something he edited. I want to read something he wrote.
3). Do I really want to pick up a series that's already 18 books long without having read any of the first 17?

As it turns out, all of my apprehensions were short-sighted.

The book's many authors contribute the well-written pieces of short prose that Martin masterfully weaves together to tell one single tale. It is not a collection of short stories; it is a novel written by many authors. The enthusiasm of its multi-authorship keep the story fresh and crisp, with each contributor (including a passage by Martin) adding flesh to the book's ensemble cast and color to the story.

Like Martin's own bibliography, nothing is sacred. The story is at times gritty and the authors are not bound to the rule that good always prevails. The inclusion of graphic violence, sex, language, homosexuality, racial and religious discrimination might scare away the casual reader. This is not a good book to read your children when they finish the Narnia series.

In regards to starting the series at book 18, I had no trouble at all picking it up. Tor and Martin made A conscious effort to make the volume easily accessible: the Wild Card concept is explained well, the story occurs independently of previous novels, and enough back story is provided when needed (i.e. John Fortune).


What I liked best about the story was this: despite occurring in an alternate reality, many of the events parallel what we see on the news today. Though this was not a moral tale or a story written for us to be "good" kids, the use of modern culture to make statements about materialism, discrimination, and what it means to be a hero are especially potent in a society saturated with "reality" television and entitlement philosophy. Martin's contribution in the middle of the novel is especially moving.

The character growth, or lack of it, in some cases, around these central themes make the book more than just a flashy, pop-culture superhero book.

Can't wait to read the next book.

I was slightly worried over some early negative reviews but never considered eschewing a new book in one of my favorite mythologies. I'm happy to say that under GRRM's able editorship, "Inside Straight" preserved the "Wild Cards" series almost paradoxical combination of fantastic yet realistic portayal of current trends, with a stubborn optimism in our continuing need for heroism. The "seams" in the mosaic are barely visible (don't impede the novelic flow of the story). The writing is intelligent, the characters memorable, and the portrayal of the strengths and weaknesses of reality TV is just great fun. Highly recommended.

I picked up this book because I had just finished A Storm of Swords and want to save A Feast for Crows until A Dance with Dragons is closer. It was a wonderful idea, too, because this is a very enjoyable book. My favorite element is being introduced to fantastic new writers I would never have come across otherwise. Daniel Abraham, Carrie Vaughn, and Caroline Specter all deliver A+ material. The mosaic novel concept is a lot of fun, too. Every chapter is interesting both from getting the newest developments in the story as well as experiencing a different writer's talents.

I'm not a genre fiction fan. A lot of people enjoy it, but in my experience, the writing isn't as good as an author who's trying new things with fiction. That being said, I think I can see myself becoming a fan of the Wild Card series. The mosaic approach is a lot of fun and I'm enjoying the bite size samplings of different writers.

The Wild Cards series came out in the 1980's, featuring various authors contributing individual short stories that formed an overall composite tale. This book brings the series into the present day, with a fun take on reality TV and a superhero version of middle-eastern conflicts.

The basic premise is that an alien ship was destroyed in the mid-1900's releasing a virus that mutates individuals based upon their personality and the thoughts they have while infected. Humans aren't entirely compatible so the virus is fatal in the majority of cases but some come through with fantastic mutations ("jokers"). The ones who gain useful powers are called "aces".

This particular book concerns a group of young "aces" coming to grips with a wide variety of abilities while participating in a reality TV project. Each author tells a story from the viewpoint of one of the aces as they deal with artificial crises and personality conflicts. Meanwhile, the Middle East has become increasingly unstable due to the presence of jokers resembling the old gods of Egypt and the activities of some aces.

The overall story was interesting, the individual sections were usually fun and the characters were memorable. I was going to say I hope they continue with the series, but apparently another book is already out with more planned for 2010.

A mosaic of short-stories and novellas woven into one story. Action , violence , sex , mystery , intrigue , espionage, assasinations .....and there are a couple of super-powers. Part one in a 3 part series "The Committee" of the the Wild Card Anthology.